Gimmie 5: A Fresh Nutrition Concept for Students

Gimme 5: A Fresh Nutrition Concept
for Students is a multi-component, school-based dietary intervention for high
school students. The four-year intervention focuses on increasing
students’ fruit and vegetable consumption. In a random assignment study
involving 12 schools, schools assigned to implement the Gimme
5 program were compared with schools assigned to receive no intervention.
Over the course of the intervention, students at Gimme
5 schools significantly increased their knowledge of fruit and vegetable
nutrition, but did not improve their attitudes toward consuming fruits and
vegetables. During the first three years of the intervention, consumption
of fruits and vegetables among students from schools assigned to implement the Gimme 5 program increased by 0.37 servings. This
constituted a significant improvement in consumption by students at Gimme 5 schools, relative to students at control
schools. No significant difference in consumption existed between groups
during the fourth year of the intervention, however.

DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM

Target population: high school students

Gimme 5: A Fresh Nutrition Concept
for Students was a three-year, multi-component intervention designed to
increase consumption of fruits and vegetables among high school students.
The program included school-wide media marketing campaigns, classroom activities,
school meal modification, and parental involvement.

The media-marketing campaign for students was the primary
strategy and sought to increase student awareness and promote positive
attitudes toward the consumption of fruits and vegetables. The campaign
consisted of monthly promotions of individual fruits and vegetables,
accompanied by nutritional messages and, during the second and third years of
the intervention, an ethnic theme. The campaign also involved monthly
taste-testings, contests, posters, cafeteria
decorations, and informational displays.

Five 55-minute workshops were provided for students.
These workshops focused on teen-relevant topics such as creating healthy snacks
and eating for athletic performance and appearance. During students’ 9th
grade year, teachers were encouraged to use fruits and vegetables in designing
lessons for their classes.

The school meal modification program consisted of increasing
the availability, variety, and taste of the fruits and vegetables available in
the school cafeteria. Food service staff attended a training sessions on
modifying menus and recipes. Ethnic menus featuring three servings of
fruit or vegetables were planned for each ethnic promotion and cafeterias were
required to prepare at least two of these menus.

The parent component of Gimme 5
encouraged parents to provide their children with more fruits and vegetables in
the home. Program staff conducted taste-testings
and distributed information at PTA meetings and family-related functions.
Parents also received brochures featuring purchasing tips, recipes, and
nutritional information at least once a semester. A monthly newsletter
and coupons were also distributed.

This Gimme 5 program is not
related to the Gimme 5 program developed by Baranowski et al. for 4th and 5th
grade students.

Evaluated population: 2,213 students from 12 schools
in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Louisiana constituted the study sample for
this investigation. Students were in 9th grade at
baseline. 84% were Caucasian, 9% were Hispanic, 4% were African American,
and 3% were of other ethnicities.

Approach: Schools were matched into pairs and then
were randomly assigned, within pairs, to the treatment group or to the control
group. Schools assigned to the treatment group implemented the Gimme 5 intervention over the course of evaluated students’
9th-12th grade years. Schools assigned to the
control group received no intervention.

Students completed baseline measures during the spring of
their 9th grade year and completed follow-up measures during the
springs of their 10th, 11th, and 12th grade
years. At each assessment point, students were surveyed on their
knowledge about fruit and vegetable nutrition, on their attitudes toward consuming
fruits and vegetables, and on their average daily consumption of fruits and
vegetables.

Results: Between the spring of students’ 9th
grade year and the spring of their 11th grade year, students at
schools assigned to implement Gimme 5 increased their
daily consumption of fruits and vegetables by 0.37 servings. Students at
control schools did not increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables
during this time period, and this constituted a significant difference between
groups. Between the spring of students’ 11th grade year and
the spring of their 12th grade year, however, consumption of fruits
and vegetables among Gimme 5 students remained
constant while consumption among control students increased.
Consequently, no significant difference in consumption existed between groups
at the follow-up during 12th grade.

Over the course of the Gimme 5
intervention, students from schools assigned to implement Gimme
5 increased their knowledge scores to a greater extent than did students from
control schools. Students at Gimme 5 schools
did not improve their attitudes toward consuming fruits and vegetables to a
greater extent than did control students, however.